International statistics

28 November 2014 à 13:49

French films at the international box office: October 2014

Lucy now ranks as the most successful French film of all time in foreign theaters, according to UniFrance Films records. This month, a string of French productions continued to build on their outstanding international achievements, while Samba made a strong debut.

In the month of October, 2014, 6 French films succeeded in attracting more than 100,000 spectators in international theaters, further strengthening French cinema's already excellent results for this year.

Victory!Lucy has crossed the 50 million admissions mark outside France and now ranks as the most successful French film of all time in international markets. The latest offering from Luc Besson has broken the record that was set only two years ago by Taken 2, another EuropaCorp production, which registered 47.8 million admissions in over 80 markets. After being released in around 60 markets since July, Lucyhas attracted more than 1 million spectators in a dozen of these markets, notably in the USA and English-speaking Canada (15.7 million), Mexico (3.5 million), Russia (3.4 million), and South Korea (2 million), where it was distributed by Universal Pictures.

At the end of October, it registered a spectacular debut in China (Fundamental), raking in 6 million spectators in 10 days, released on 6,000 screens, which also sets a new record for the number of prints of a French film released abroad. This outstanding performance contributed to Lucy's overall score of 52 million admissions in foreign theaters by the end of October, representing close to €300 million in box office revenues.

This is an all-time high according to UniFrance Films statistics, and not only in terms of results in theaters outside France, but also on a worldwide scale: if we add the 5.2 million admissions registered in French theaters, Lucy is credited with over 57 million admissions around the world at the end of October. These results outshine those of the French-language hit, The Intouchables, which clocked up close to 52 million admissions (19.5 million in France and 32 million in foreign theaters). This marks a big success for EuropaCorp and Luc Besson, whose latest film now joins the ranks of The Fifth Element as one of the Top 3 French films outside France, according to UniFrance Films.

Beauty and the Beast enjoyed a spectacular launch in Japan. Released on 155 screens by Gaga Corporation, it attracted 186,000 spectators in just 3 days. This fine performance, which allowed it to jump to 3rd place at the box office, was bolstered by its extensive promotional campaign and the presence of Léa Seydoux and Christophe Gans in Japan. Two other factors linked to the exhibition sector in Japan also contributed to these results: a concession rate applied to tickets on the film's opening day as well as the timing of its release over a long week-end including a public holiday, thus extending its opening weekend. At the end of October, Beauty and the Beast posted a total of 3.7 million admissions in 24 international markets. French films are enjoying a successful year in Japan in 2014, with over 1.6 million admissions registered at the end of October, including 775,000 for Lucy (Toho-Towa Company), over 400,000 for Grace of Monaco (Gaga Corporation), 100,000 for Yves Saint Laurent (Kadokawa Corporation), and just under 90,000 for On the Way to School (Kino Films - Kinoshita Management Co.Ltd).

Serial (Bad) Weddings has topped 5 million admissions abroad! Now joining the ranks of the Top 20 most successful French-language productions in foreign theaters since 2000, this film by Philippe de Chauveron continues its international run, currently heading into Asia. In South Korea, its distributor Bloomage Co., who were behind the release of The Intouchables (1.7 million admissions), have offered the film an ambitious launch on 343 screens. It registered 106,000 admissions on its opening weekend (including more than 20,000 admissions to preview screenings), which is a remarkable achievement in this market. By the end of October, the film had already charmed more than 170,000 South Korean moviegoers. In Germany (Neue Visionen Filmverleih), Serial (Bad) Weddings is holding strong at the top of the annual charts, including films of all nationalities, currently posting a total of 3.4 million admissions.